Old Bluetooth device overheating my iPhone

[Rod]

This is an odd one because I can't think of why it might happen but maybe someone else can.

I have an old Jawbone Jambox BT speaker I have been using since return to Bali about a month back. Reason being, I accidentally left our Sony "Tube" in Melb.

After 30min of use my iPhone 13 becomes quite warm and the battery can be drained by as much as 10%.

This doesn't happen with any other BT device I use so it's pretty clear that the Jambox is responsible, it's about 8-9 years old and works perfectly in every other way so I'm puzzled why it would cause this. Essentially I just don't have enough technical knowledge on the topic, maybe someone else has?

My limited experience has been BT devices either work or they don't, for example I have a micro stereo in Melb that does not connect to the iPhone 13 by BT and I assumed it was due to BT protocol changes over time. It used to work with my old iPhone SE 2 but not with the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

 

[ferrarr]

Are you using any apps while the iPhone is streaming to the speaker? How long do you use it and notice the warmth? Or the battery drain?

 

[Rod]

Yes and no, it seems to make no difference. The phone gets hot and the battery drains rapidly. It takes about 5min for the phone to start heating up.

 

[Slydude]

My only guess would be that that the Bluetooth module in the speaker is having difficulty maintaining a connection with the phone, but that's just a guess.

Does that speaker have any associated apps that are running when the speaker is active?

 

[Rod]

Not that I can tell but it does have phone answering built in, like a car speaker system.

 

[RadDave]

Not that I can tell but it does have phone answering built in, like a car speaker system.

Rod - just groping for ideas, but do you have a 'lot' of BT devices associated w/ your iPhone? If so, then maybe 'forgetting' them (can always be reconnected) might help - don't know? I've never had an issue w/ my BT devices but only had a handful connected. Good luck - Dave

 

[Slydude]

@Rod Given your troubleshooting experience you've probably thought of this but here goes anyway. Have you tried pairing that speaker with another phone (preferably an iPone with the same version of IOS)?

 

[Rod]

Yes, I tried pairing with my wife's iPhone 15 Pro Max. No real overheating but definitely an increased battery drain although not as much as my iPhone 13. That seems logical to me given the caperbilities of the 15 compared to the 13. All seems to point to the speaker. I did consider updating the firmware on the Jambox but it's very complicated.